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From: nw@retrocomputingtasmania.com (Nigel Williams)
Subject: [TUHS] pre-UNIX legacy in UNIX?
Date: Tue, 19 Dec 2017 17:00:25 +1100	[thread overview]
Message-ID: <CACCFpdx0UamZwaXf=LaAjFU=SfBx6RQJirj3qcGz49zDi_L=Mw@mail.gmail.com> (raw)

I blundered today into the GECOS field in /etc/passwd:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gecos_field

"Some early Unix systems at Bell Labs used GECOS machines for print
spooling and various other services,[3] so this field was added to
carry information on a user's GECOS identity."

I had forgotten about this field and I don't recall it being
previously described as related to GECOS (I likely didn't take note at
the time I first encountered it).

Aside from the influence of Multics and other things on UNIX design
are there other tangible[1] manifestations of non-UNIX operating
system things like the GECOS field that were carried forward intact in
later UNIX implementations?

[1] things can be pointed at, rather than design ideas


             reply	other threads:[~2017-12-19  6:00 UTC|newest]

Thread overview: 14+ messages / expand[flat|nested]  mbox.gz  Atom feed  top
2017-12-19  6:00 Nigel Williams [this message]
2017-12-19  6:21 ` Lars Brinkhoff
2017-12-19  7:07   ` Don Hopkins
2017-12-19 18:21 ` Grant Taylor
2017-12-19 19:05   ` Ralph Corderoy
2017-12-19 20:03     ` Grant Taylor
2017-12-19 20:14       ` arnold
2017-12-19 22:30   ` [TUHS] History of passwd fullname/info/"gecos" field (was Re: pre-UNIX legacy in UNIX?) Random832
2017-12-20  3:07     ` Noel Hunt
2017-12-19 18:48 [TUHS] pre-UNIX legacy in UNIX? Doug McIlroy
2017-12-19 20:08 ` Lars Brinkhoff
2017-12-19 22:26   ` Doug McIlroy
2017-12-19 20:29 Richard Tobin
2017-12-20  1:03 Noel Chiappa

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